


Kai VS A Bunch of Evil Stuff

by sunrealbreath



Category: Ben 10 Series
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fix It, Kai-centric, M/M, Other, dnaliens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 07:55:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25467373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunrealbreath/pseuds/sunrealbreath
Relationships: Kai Green/Original Character(s), Kevin Levin/Gwen Tennyson
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

"I'd never tell

No, I'd never say a word

And oh it aches

But it feels oddly good to hurt"

\- dodie

Dru met Kai in art class. And from the moment she saw her, Dru had butterflies. Those belly kind of butterflies that stick with you. Though she was only nine, Dru knew she had it bad for the girl who had sat next to her. She remembered clearly the bright orange scrunchie that held up Kai’s shiny black hair. The way her knee bounced incessantly when she was bored, which was pretty much the whole class.

Somehow, by fate or by luck, or maybe just plain happenstance; Kai was the one to speak to her first. The girl had only been asking for a spare pencil, and somehow Dru managed to fumble her spare into Kai’s hand. Their hands lingered for a little longer than what you’d call typical, but neither minded.

And Kai smiled.

Their eyes met.

She looked right at her.

And Dru couldn’t help but melt, just a little bit. How could she not? Looking back, Dru wondered if that was really enough to fall for someone as hard as she did. But in the end, none of that mattered. Because she did. And her life would never be the same because of it.

But she didn’t have the faintest idea what to do with her feelings, much less at the time. She knew that women could fall in love with women. Her classmate had two moms who sometimes came to pick up their son from school. Beyond that? Dru wasn’t really sure how it all worked. And she had been too scared to do anything about it anyway.

In the end, she settled for being friends in art class. Only for that to change too.

By the end of that school year, Dru and Kai had become the very best of friends. And Dru had imagined a future where they were- maybe more? She told herself she was content enough. After all, there were many people who never even said hello to their crush. They were doomed to watch from afar while the object of their affections lived their life far away. But Dru and Kai were literally inseparable these days! How lucky was she?

Right?

And surely, Dru also told herself, eventually she would tell Kai how she really felt. Just not yet. She would come to regret that choice, many years later. But at the time she had been too scared of the potential consequences. She was sure Kai wouldn’t return her feelings and worse- she would refuse to be her friend. She knew that some people had… something against girls liking girls, but she didn’t think Kai was like that.

But there was no way to know- y’know? She knew enough to know that liking girls wasn't normal. If she knew that, then Kai probably knew it too. What if she thought of Dru differently? It’s not like she was brave enough to ask.

As the summer of that year grew ever closer, Dru learned from her mom that she would be staying in New York with her dad. She guessed it was supposed to be a good thing, but she couldn’t help but be disappointed that she wouldn’t be spending the summer in her hometown, with Kai. Of course, there was plenty in New York to be excited about- which Kai never failed to mention whenever Dru expressed anything less than joy about the encroaching summer trip. Dru struggled with feeling hurt, wasn't Kai upset that she would be leaving? “It’s really not that great,” Dru would tell her friend. It wasn’t her first time going to the so-called city that never sleeps. “

It’s bright and noisy. People are yelling all the time. You can’t even see the stars at night.”

“But what about Broadway ,” Kai made a sweeping gesture as though pulling back curtains with her hands, “and the celebs ? The fancy restaurants and the horse-drawn carriages?” Her gaze was fixed on an innocuous tree branch overhanging the convenience store entrance they were hanging out at.

Dru supposed she was imagining a gigantic stage, with sparkling lights and all the usual stuff people thought about the city when you’ve never been there. To Dru though, the allure of the city that literally never sleeps had worn off long ago. Though Dru knew it was a good thing to go to the city, she couldn’t help but prefer the place she was born to. The desert air, the cacti, the stars, and the mountains in the distance overlooking their small piece of the Navajo Nation. Kai wasn’t like that though. She couldn’t wait to leave the place. Dru smiled softly at her crush’s entranced face. She couldn’t help but think she looked pretty dumb staring at a tree branch like it was magical or whatever.

“It’s not that big a deal,” Dru finally replied. Though truthfully, she was just focused on how pretty her friend was, and had stopped caring about whatever they were talking about. Kai caught her off guard by turning her gaze to Dru, who blinked and hoped her cheeks weren’t blushing as fiercely as they felt. She didn’t look away. Kai’s grin grew bigger and drew closer. Suddenly everything felt very very real, and somehow extremely dreamlike at the same time. Dru didn’t move, didn’t breathe. Was this the moment that she had read about in those romance novels? Was she about to melt, to explode, and launch into the sky like they did in the books? Was this is a-

Then Kai punched her. It was a light punch on the shoulder, more of a nudge really.

"Tag!" She shouted, then bolted down the sidewalk. But Dru was trying to remember how to breathe.

Still, she registered herself shouting something like "Hey!" or "Get back here!" and ran after Kai. Pushing all the doubts that had risen up to the back of her mind. But she couldn’t get rid of them. How long, she wondered, would she wrestle with these feelings? And how long before they ended up changing or ruining- what she thought- to be a fragile friendship? They spent the remaining days before Dru's departure exploring the nooks and crannies of their small town. Most places they had seen before. Some they hadn't. They hung out by the dumpsters behind the convenience store sometimes, where a group of teenagers used to gather after school. They imagined themselves older--still thick as thieves but taller, cooler, and gorgeous like the girls in the movies. They pretended stalks of grass held the social power of cigarettes, holding them in between their teeth and pretending to be secret agents staking out the store.

Sometimes Kai would bring up New York, and Dru would talk about city life though it was painful thinking about her upcoming departure, and they would make a game out of transforming their surroundings into things from the city. In their imaginations the old telephone poles became skyscrapers. The convenience store dumpster became a New York subway car. Dru mentioned that New York also had dumpsters, but Kai was serious about riding a subway, so it was a subway car. Other times they climbed onto the rooftops, and they navigated the town from above looking for signs and shapes in the empty spaces between mountain crannies. Hoping for a clue of ancient, buried treasures. Neither had a clue what they were looking for, why, or how a treasure would appear in the vast landscape. They both thought the purple glow to the north was promising, but neither had the guts to venture out that far. When the day finally came for Dru to leave, Kai showed up at her house that morning on a bike Dru had never seen before. A present from Kai’s grandpa she assumed. Before she could stop herself, Dru finally voiced the fears she had been hanging onto for weeks.

"Aren't you sad? That I'm leaving?" Immediately she wanted to curl in on herself. She was so selfish, and pitiful, and- "What? How- Of course I'm sad!" Kai exclaimed. She abandoned the task of taking off her helmet and let it fall to the grass. She held Dru's shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"I've never had a friend like you all my life. I don't think I've ever been this close to anyone else! Oh, Dru... You're so silly, you know that?" Dru feels her bottom lip trembling. She pushes aside her feelings of doubt, and launches herself at Kai, holding her as tight as she can. She feels the words bubbling in her throat. I think I love you. No. I know I love you. I love you. She doesn't know whether she wants Kai to get the wordless message or not- and curses her own trepidation for the hundredth time. They share a long and heartfelt goodbye. Words were said. Promises were made. Dru held back her confession by biting her lip and allowed herself to just enjoy the hug. They wouldn’t see each other for months. But at least the two of them had right now.

When they finally said goodbye, Kai made Dru promise to call a “dozen dozen” times a day. And Dru said she would call double that- as long as Kai promised to call her too. Kai laughed, brushing her eyes, where Dru could’ve sworn she saw a tear. “

Yeah, of course I will, though don’t expect anything exciting,”

“What could possibly happen here that would be cooler than New York?”


	2. Chapter 2

As it turned out, a great deal could happen here that was more exciting than New York. On the craziest night of her young life, Kai did three things that she thought would never actually happen. 

  1. She learned that aliens were real. 
  2. She met a kid that could turn into a bunch of different aliens with a magic watch.
  3. She fought a werewolf. 



After the whole alien thing, Kai’s grandpa told her explicitly not to tell anyone about any of it. Kai agreed. And promptly called up Dru to tell her everything. Dru was different, okay? 

“So here’s how it went,” she told an attentive Dru on the end of the line, presumably eating popcorn. 

* * *

“Wow.” Dru’s voice was hushed in awe. 

“Yup,” Kai said. 

“That’s just- wow. I can’t- wha- Kai! Aliens are real!” 

“I know!” 

“Like really real!”

“Dru, are you okay?” 

“Yeah. I just can’t believe it. I’m- I’m still wrapping my brain around all this. I’m glad you’re alright- I mean, not that- like- I know you can take care of yourself. You actually fought a werewolf! Or an alien. What was it again?”

“An alien. For sure. We thought it was a werewolf, because.. Well it looks just like one. But it’s actually an alien that looks like a werewolf. And it’s got this sonic howl that’s  _ so  _ cool-!” 

“Kai?” Kai gasps at the sound of her aunt’s sleepy shout and covers the phone, holding herself still as possible. The last thing she wanted to do was wake up her aunt and deal with her cranky self. If she was quiet, maybe the old lady would roll over and go back to sleep. She heard Dru’s muffled voice coming through on the phone, but she didn’t dare speak. After a good minute, she finally whispered into the receiver. 

“Hey listen, I don’t want to wake up Aunt Dez so I should probably get off the phone.”

“Oh okay. Call me tomorrow?”

“Always. Good night, love you. Bye!” Kai hung up the phone and dashed as quietly as she could to her bedroom, taking care to avoid the creaky floor-board by the bathroom. A werewolf she could deal with. Cranky aunts were another thing. If the old lady got woken up at this time of night Kai would never hear the end of it. 

Aunt Dez was great, really. But she was terrifying if her rest was disturbed in the middle of the night. Kai was looking forward to a great big warm breakfast in the morning. There was hardly anything in the universe that could stop her aunt from waking before sunrise and preparing a person-size stack of waffles. Kai’s uncle had passed before she was born, but Aunt Dez often talked about him over breakfast. He had been an explorer and a scientist. Beyond that, Kai was sorry to say that she hadn’t paid much attention to Aunt Dez’s stories about him. She wondered if he and Grandpa Wes had ever encountered any aliens of their own on their many trips together when they were younger. 

As she crept into her room her mind continued to race with a million questions. But soon after she kicked off her shoes and crashed into bed, the exhaustion overtook her. One last thought resonated in her brain as she dozed off. 

There had to be more to find in that canyon.

* * *

The following morning, Kai prepared herself for a long trek in the canyon. She packed a large bottle of water, food, some rope she cobbled together, and something called a multi-tool. It was the size of a swiss army knife but inside it were pliers, screwdrivers, and yes- blades. Grandpa Wes had gifted it to her after pulling a complete 180 mood swing. 

The old man had been none too pleasant with her on the drive home.  _ Apparently  _ telling a kid that she liked the werewolf better than him was “rude” and Kai was subjected to the stifling feeling of her grandpa’s disappointment permeating the front seat of his pickup truck all the way home. Kai was sure he was overreacting for no reason. And he never even said how cool it was that she had helped save the day back in that volcano. When he slowed to a stop in front of her house, Kai prepared herself for another long lecture. But instead she felt a tap on the shoulder and felt an object being left in her hands. 

“You surprised me, tonight Kai,” her grandpa said quietly while she fiddled with this new gadget. 

“It’s no omni-ah,  _ magic watch _ , but it is useful. I want you to have it.” 

“I thought you were mad at me,” Kai said, looking up. 

Grandpa Wes sighed heavily and broke eye contact for a moment, “I’m not mad at you,” and meeting her gaze, “But in all the time I’ve been away, I’ve missed you growing up. And becoming more curious...and reckless.” 

So this wasn’t about her being “rude” to Ben? Kai opened her mouth to say she most definitely was  _ not reckless  _ but Grandpa Wes kept going. 

“I wish with all my heart I could be with you to teach you… but I can’t. There are things I have to do, things I’ve seen, and you’re not ready to see them yet. I know I can’t stop you from looking though.” He gestured to the tool in Kai’s hands, “That’s a multi-tool. It’s not for fighting, but you can use it to solve most problems,” 

“Solving problems,” Kai murmured. She wasn’t confident in its effectiveness against a werewolf, but it was something she supposed. It was in a leather pouch with markings she couldn’t make out in the dark. 

“There’s a bunch of stuff you’re not telling me, isn’t there?” she said abruptly. 

Grandpa Wes answered without hesitation. “Yes. And that’s all you need to know for now, Kai.” 

Kai sulked. Not fair. 

In the morning light, her belly full of waffles, she remembered the last night’s events with some more perspective and came to a conclusion. 

She was going to find out  _ everything  _ Wes was keeping from her. And she was gonna start by exploring that canyon on her own. 

* * *

It was early morning, and the rays pierced the grays and browns of Chinle with pinks and soft yellow sunbeams. She could hear the sound of cars being turned on as adults headed off to their daily jobs. She couldn’t help but detest the idea of herself one day having a life like that. Every day starting the same, going to the same building and kowtowing to the same boss. A life of unending monotony. Her aunt was like that. She had a job at the local convenience store, which made it well- convenient for her and Dru to hang out at. But still. After the events of last night, Kai didn’t think she could settle for a nine to five. She was going to aim higher. 

She clambered down from her roof with her makeshift rucksack and retrieved her new bike from the shed. It had been a gift from Grandpa. A late birthday present from last year. She admired the bright red sheen and the bright blue accents. It had been equipped with tires fit for offroading and six gears. Kai couldn’t have asked for more. Getting to the canyon on this baby would be easy peasy. 

As it turned out though, the ride was nearly two hours. Kai didn’t mind though. Though the air dry and hot, the wind in her face was exhilarating. She felt her muscles waking up and allowed a smile to spread across her face. She imagined the suburban roads before her to curl and twist into the sky like her toy race tracks, and she pedaled faster and faster. Taking turns at ridiculous speeds and nearly wiping out not just a few times. She was starting to get the hang of these gears. 

When she finally reached the canyon, she had effectively tired herself out, so she rested by the entrance. After last night, it seemed no one was in a hurry to return. Caution tape had been erected across the entrance gate. A formality really, since anyone could just as easily go around as step over it. 

She found a ledge to sit on and took some time to eat a sandwich. Ham. Cheese. What more could a girl ask for? She knew her grandpa wouldn’t be too happy with her solo-adventure in the desert- or the theft- or talking to Dru, but truthfully she couldn’t bring herself to feel all too bad. He had been totally unfair to her when he refused to let her come on the werewolf hunt. He said some phony stuff about her being “too young”. She was ten years old! Not a baby anymore. Furthermore, Ben and Gwen got to go even though they were literally the same age. She could have screamed at the injustice of it all. 

In her stewing, Kai tossed pebbles at some cholla. Most bounced off without any effect. But one memorably reacted and jumped four feet into the air. Congratulating herself, Kai packed up her lunch debris in her rucksack and put her helmet back on. Time for the real adventure. 

Her plan was to some real investigating into those mountains- specifically into the purple lights she had seen. After seeing the alien, she was convinced they had to be connected somehow. Yet, the caves they followed that alien into were most definitely not the source of the lights. 

When she and Dru had wondered about them, they figured it must be some mirage, or maybe an effect of light pollution. But in all her reading, Kai knew that while coincidences were common, they were also often an indicator of truth. This was not the time for self-doubt. Whatever that light was, had to be connected to the alien. 

After a while, Kai had revisited all the locations the alien had been sighted. The bridge. The caved-in tunnel entrance. There were still tracks in the sand, some scorch marks too from the volcano. Unless Kai could find a magic watch of her own, she couldn’t see how she was getting inside. The multi-tool certainly wasn’t gonna help here. 

She liked Ben, really. He was obviously totes cool for saving her life in the flash flood. But she couldn’t help but be uncomfortable with the googly eyes he made at her. She just wasn’t the romantic type. So she let him down easy. Or she thought she had. It wasn’t like she kicked him in between the legs like that jerk Bernard from gym class. She told herself he would be fine. He was a superhero anyway. 

By this time the sun had reached the highest point in the sky, and with it, the temperature had climbed to cooking conditions. If Kai couldn't get into these caves, maybe there was another she could hunker down in for a short breather. She turned her gaze eastward. Being so close to the canyon last night had allowed her to pinpoint the source of the light, which no one seemed to notice but her. She didn’t mention it to the others, but at the time she figured it wasn’t related to the more immediate problem of saving Ben from the werewolf “curse” and then stopping an erupting volcano. Today was different. She rode toward the other mountain. 

It wasn’t as large as the other one, either in height or width. But as Kai got closer she could feel a tingling in her gut which she knew by now meant something was up. Good something or bad something, she couldn’t tell. She didn’t immediately find a cave, but after a little exploring, she discovered a crack in the mountain’s side. Just big enough for someone of her size to squeeze through. Kai grabbed her flashlight and clicked it nervously. Well, there’s no way she’s stopping now. 

“Here goes nothing,” and Kai shimmied through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again and thank you for reading thus far. Some more resources/voices for ya. 
> 
> Dia Lacina   
>  is a game critic who has written some amazing pieces concerning Native rep in media. I recommend Lacina's pieces on Shadow of the Tomb Raider, Horizon: Zero Dawn, and Thunderbird Strike. Dia also writes about the portrayal of mental illness in media and colonialism (see Lacina's work on Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice). Dia is an indigenous, queer, and a self-proclaimed Paid-Ass Video Game writer. 
> 
> Buffy Sainte-Marie  
>  is a renowned musician and her music spans across folk, rock, and I'd say experimental genres while also incorporating indigenous sound. She has done collaborations with A Tribe Called Red (an indigenous DJ collective) and others. The first album I heard from her was 'Power In The Blood'.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank You for reading!
> 
> This story is still very much a work in progress, but I have big ideas about where it goes moving forward. 
> 
> I've looked to several Tumblr blogs/users to educate myself as a non-native person writing a story with a native protagonist. In the endnotes throughout the fic I'm going to leave some resources for you to check out, and I highly recommend you do. 
> 
> https://the-aila-test.tumblr.com/
> 
> This blog is un by a native woman who has done the work of compiling a list of native women in media that pass what she coins "The Aila Test". You may be familiar with the Bechdel test, and this is a similar idea. A very helpful lens with which to look at media and see whether it portrays good representation for native women. 
> 
> ((excerpt from the blog)  
>  To pass the Aila Test, your film/animation / comic book/novel / etc. must abide by these three important rules:
> 
> 1\. Is she an Indigenous / Aboriginal woman who is a main character…
> 
> 2\. Who DOES NOT fall in love with a white man…
> 
> 3\. And DOES NOT end up raped or murdered at any point in the story.)
> 
> https://indigenousfantasy.tumblr.com/
> 
> Indigenous Fantasy is a Tumblr run by 2 mods dedicated to the representation of indigenous people in fantasy and fiction. 
> 
> Stay tuned for more!


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